If you haven’t noticed already, I’m very fair skinned. No, seriously, verrrry fair. Living in San Francisco hasn’t helped the situation either. It’s always warm enough to be nice out but almost never warm enough to wear a tank top, let alone a bathing suit. Most of my skin hasn’t seen the sun since we moved here over two years ago.

In high school and college most of my friends loved going to the pool or the beach and working on their tan. I tried to keep up even though I don’t tan very well and I don’t really enjoy laying out in the hot sun that much. But, I’ve since changed my tune. One, because I don’t want to spend a lot of time doing things I don’t enjoy anymore. But, also because the idea of aging is on my mind (not to mention skin cancer). It seems like everywhere I turn I hear that one of the best tips for aging gracefully is sun protection. You hear it from your mom, your dermatologist, those celebrities who are 60 but could pass for 40, and anyone else doling out advice. Meaning all those sunburns I’ve already gotten throughout my life aren’t going to help. So, I’ve decided to do my best to avoid more of them.

I probably won’t be spending much time laying out sun bathing. But, I can’t avoid the beach or pool all together. I mean, Xan and I already have a vacation planned to Southern California with his family. And while I can choose not to tan on the beach I do want to take surfing lessons, go sea-kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding, and participate in lots of other fun water sports. For me, the hours on the water that those things require is a sunburn waiting to happen. Both because you’re directly on the water for so long and because it’s hard to keep sunscreen on while being active. That’s why I’ve set out on the hunt for a cute, long-sleeved, sun protecting bathing suit. I will of course still use sunscreen. But, with long sleeves and a crew neck I can protect my shoulders, chest, and back, which are some of the areas I get burned the worst.

I’ve been scouring the Internet looking for the cutest long sleeve suits that can also provide sun protection. Here’s what I found! Almost all of these have UPF 50 protection.